Taylor Swift Leaves Big Machine, Signs With Republic Records

Taylor Swift has split with the only record label she's ever known. The one-time country singer just announced she has signed with Republic Records and Universal Records, meaning she is no longer a Big Machine Label Group artist.

The label switch comes with a couple of unique stipulations, as outlined in an Instagram post at Swift's page. First, she'll own all of her master recordings from now on. More importantly, she states, any sale of UMG Spotify shares will result in a distribution of money to UMG artists, non-recoupable.

"I see this as a sign that we are headed towards positive change for creators — a goal I'm never going to stop trying to achieve, in whatever ways I can," Swift writes.

The fourth slide in Swift's multi-page post on Instagram expresses gratitude to Big Machine's Scott Borchetta, the man who discovered her more than a decade ago. A teenaged Swift famously played the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville one night, where Borchetta was in attendance. The now 28-year-old has released six studio albums for the label and sold tens of millions of albums and singles while becoming an extremely successful touring artist.

The move is surprising, but not unexpected — it has long been rumored Swift was meeting with multiple potential record label partners as she decided what would be best for her career. It's possible her departure could have ramifications for other artists on the Big Machine Label Group roster. Borchetta has been rumored to be selling the label off and on for years. Swift has been a significant source of revenue for a label that also includes Florida Georgia Line, Brantley Gilbert, Thomas Rhett, Reba McEntire and the newly-signed Lady Antebellum.